Chapter 4: Put to the Test
For a whole month I'd worn my weights as long as I possibly could each day to the point that I began to sleep in them and even bathe with them on. I wanted to experience the weight every waking second to become as used to having the weight on me as possible. But there was a problem with this.
"Dako, please just take the weights off for five minutes," Fluttershy pleaded.
"I'm sorry honey," I said while using my jump rope, "But I can't, especially not right now."
I set my jump rope down and began jogging in place.
"Dako, it's been a month now, and each week you added a thousand pounds of more weight. It's time to take a break," Fluttershy said softly.
"I understand your concern Fluttershy, but I just have to do this," I said, warming up for a 10 mile run.
Fluttershy looked at me with big puppy-dog eyes. I pretended not to notice, but I couldn't fight it anymore once she started pouting her lower lip. I stopped jogging in place and turned to face her.
"Okay Fluttershy, I'll take a break," I said, kneeling down, putting a hand on the side of her face.
As I put my forehead against hers I heard a loud wooshing sound coming towards me, I turned to face the source and saw Rainbow Dash coming at me full speed. She spread her wings open wide, slowing herself down and landing right in front of me.
"Dako, check this out!" Rainbow Dash shouted excitedly.
She pulled a piece of paper out of her saddlebag with her mouth and held it out to me. I grabbed it, quickly scanning it. It read, "Ponyville Martial Arts Festival".
"Okay Rainbow Dash, don't tell me you're thinking about entering this," I began.
"No, I entered you in it!" Rainbow Dash quickly shouted.
I paused for a second, looking to Fluttershy for her input.
"Oh, you aren't thinking about doing this, are you Dako?" Fluttershy asked.
"Um, Rainbow Dash, why did you enter me into some fight thingy without asking me first?" I asked.
"Hey, no need to thank me! I just thought this would be a good way to test your skills and strength so far," Rainbow Dash said with pride.
I looked back at the flier, trying to see what the conditions of the fight were. It read that the first place qualifier would receive 500 bits.
"Hm, well, I could use the money," I thought out loud.
"Oh no, please don't, you're in no condition as it is, after working out constantly and all," Fluttershy said.
"If you don't show up after being signed up you get officially recognized as a coward by all of Ponyville," Rainbow Dash said.
"Mm, yeah, I don't think they actually do that," I said, trying to find it on the flier.
"Sure they do, it's a motivational technique," Rainbow Dash said.
I carefully considered my options, or at least I would've, if Fluttershy hadn't tried to decide for me.
"Sorry Rainbow Dash, but Dako is no coward, even if some fighting thingy says so. Unfortunately, he can't compete, he needs his rest," Fluttershy interrupted.
"Now hold on Fluttershy, we could use the money. Food isn't free, and I like to eat, a lot," I began, "Plus, I could use a test to see where I am with my training. Okay Dash, get some tickets for you and your friends, I'll give you guys a show."
"Dako! Please don't, I don't like fighting!" Fluttershy cried.
"Honey, don't worry, I'll be fine," I said, putting my hands on her shoulders.
"Honey?" Rainbow Dash said, looking at me weird.
I leaned in to Fluttershy to whisper in her ear.
"Look Fluttershy, I know you care about me, but no matter what I've gotta do this. If I can't win this thing then what good will I be as a superhero if any real danger shows up?" I asked her.
"But Dako, there isn't any danger, and there hasn't been anything that me and my friends can't take care of with the Elements of Harmony," Fluttershy said softly.
"I know honey, but what if one day the elements aren't strong enough?" I began, "Look, I'll be extra careful. Plus, I'll even let you be my personal medic."
"Well, I don't know, how can I be your medic if you promise me not to get hurt?" Fluttershy asked.
"Well, you'll be there just in case. After all, accidents happen," I said.
"Well, okay. But I won't like it. I don't like fighting," Fluttershy said, finally giving in.
"Alright, when is the fight?" I asked, turning to Rainbow Dash.
"I'm glad you asked, it starts today!" Rainbow Dash said, taking off back towards Ponyville.
Fluttershy and I got everything we'd need and headed to Ponyville. On our way we saw many ponies from all around heading into town. It seemed this fight was quite a thing. But, as I looked closer and closer I noticed that most of these ponies didn't look like fighters. In fact, most of them looked like the only thing they ever fought off was boredom, or sickness.
As Fluttershy and I made it to the makeshift arena we saw the others. They were all set up in their seats waiting for us. Pinkie Pie was bouncing around and waving her hooves wildly trying to catch our attention, not like it was difficult to find them. There wasn't a whole lot of ponies there, and she stood out like, well, like she always does.
"So Dako, ready to show us what ya been up to?" Applejack asked, smiling.
"Yeah! You must be stronger than everyone here!" Pinkie Pie added.
"Well, that's what we're gonna find out," I said, looking around.
I noticed a small group of ponies standing around on the other side of the arena. I could tell by their costumes they were the other fighters, but they couldn't have been the only fighters, there were only four of them.
"Um, I think I'm gonna go check those guys, I think those are the other fighters," I said, heading away from my friends.
As I made my way through the crowd I could hear the group chattering amongst themselves. As I got closer to them they noticed me and all looked at me with strange looks and wide eyes.
"Whoa, who's the hairless ape?" one of them asked, causing the other three to laugh.
I stood there, pretending he hadn't said that. It didn't really matter anyway, in a few minutes I'd have a chance to take him on for real in the ring.
"Uh, hi there, my name is Dako, I guess I'm the only other fighter?" I said.
"Whoa! It talks!" another fighter said, the others laughed again.
"Oh, so you're Dako," another said, "I thought a strange name could only belong to a strange fellow."
He was a unicorn, a light brown with a gray mane. He had a brick for a cutie mark. He didn't seem like much of a fighter to me, I mean, I don't really now how muscles on a pony look in comparison to my own, but he didn't seem very buff.
"Oh, yeah, that's me. What are your names then?" I asked.
The first stallion to speak who called me a "hairless ape" earlier introduced himself. He was a gray pegasus with a brown mane and a wrecking ball cutie mark.
"The name's Hammer Hoof," he said, "wanna know why?"
"Well, sure, why not," I said, feigning interest.
"It's 'cause I can punch so hard," Hammer Hoof said, "I can smash through anything in my way, even you, scrawny."
"I doubt it," I replied, "what about you, tiny?"
A very big stallion stood up from behind the group. If I were back home, this guy could make actual horses look small. He was a dark brown earth pony with huge muscles, a black mane, and a mountain for a cutie mark. He was about the size of an elephant.
"They call me "The Landslide"," he said in a deep voice.
"I see," I replied, looking up at him as I stood in his shadow.
"My name is Clay," the unicorn with a brick for a cutie mark said, "and I look forward to fighting against you."
I was a bit stunned by his politeness. But it was refreshing nonetheless.
"Okay, and that leaves you there in the yellow," I said to another pegasus.
He was yellow with a sky blue mane, and a lightning bolt for a cutie mark. He seemed very lean compared to the others.
"My names Burstfire. Back in my town I was the quickest hoof around. Nobody can match my speed," he said.
"Well, I never considered myself a "nobody" before," I said jokingly.
An official walked up to us and held up a clipboard with his magic. He began to read out the list of those who would be matched against who. It would be me against Hammer Hoof first, then Landslide against Burstfire, next would be the victor from each match against each other to fight Clay.
"Alright," the official spoke, "any questions?"
"Um, yes, first, why are there only five of us?" I asked. Clay leaned over to me.
"Well, this is just a small Ponyville fight. It's not very popular or big. If you want the stronger types you should go to Canterlot," Clay said.
"Oh, okay then. Then second, why are we all fighting to fight Clay?" I asked, slowly turning to face Clay. He just smiled.
"Oh, you'll find out soon enough," Clay said, continuing to smile.
And just like that, he went from being the only guy I genuinely like here, to being someone I really feared. His smile seemed, well, not really cocky but conniving. This guy seemed like he was some kind of star, but not a single spectator was actually cheering for any one of us, it's like we were equally unknown, and yet this guy felt like he was a force to be reckoned with.
"Alright gentlecolts, these are the rules. Victory comes from putting your opponent into a submission move, knocking your opponent unconscious, or tossing your opponent out of the ring," the official said.
I tried to forget the chills running down my spine as I took my position in the ring with Hammer Hoof. The ring was just a large flat mat on the ground, nothing fancy. We stood at opposite ends and waited for the bell to ring and the fight to begin.
As we stood there I got into a defensive stance. Okay, sure this guy could punch through anything, but I wasn't a pony, or a regular dude. I was a saiyan, and I would rather see the look on this guys face as he runs up and finds I'm the one thing he can't punch through.
The bell rang and Hammer Hoof took of toward me. I held my arms up in front of my face, standing perfectly still. He leapt into the air and swung a hoof right for me, putting his whole body into his punch as he landed right in front of me.
My eyes widened with shock and pain as I actually felt his punch. I can't decide though if it hurt because he was actually that strong or because I was punched by a hoof instead of a fist. Either way, I jumped back in pain, shaking the arm that was hit.
"Agh! Jeez, you do hit hard!" I shouted, laughing the pain away.
Hammer Hoof dropped down to all fours again and just stood there with a confused expression.
"Um, yeah. Are you gonna fight? Or..." Hammer Hoof said, watching hop around in pain.
As I calmed down, I took a deep breath and got back into a fighting stance. I nodded to him, signaling I was ready. He charged at me again.
At the last second I waited until he was just three feet away from me before I jumped clear over him, watching him fly under me as he swung his hoof. As soon as I landed behind him I twisted around and swept his hind legs out from under him. As he was currently standing on just his hind legs this threw him down on his side.
He quickly hopped up and turned to face me. We began circling, watching each other closely, now aware that neither was a pushover.
"You know," I began, "it's kind of awkward trying to fight a pony. I mean, your short, I'm tall, I don't really have any place to hit you, and I don't like hurting animals."
He jumped at me this time giving me the perfect opportunity to step to the side and drop an elbow over his back as he flew past me. As I connected I heard him let out a grunt as he was thrown straight to the ground. He slid a few feet across the mat.
I turned to see him get up. He turned to face me and chuckled a little.
"That wasn't so bad. It hurt, but it didn't stop me," Hammer Hoof said.
"Well, I know. I didn't want to hurt you too badly, you know? Also, my friends kinda wanted a good show," I said.
"Oh really now? So you think you're that good? Okay then, I can't blame you, everyone has to have some mental preparation, even if it mean lying to yourself," Hammer Hoof said, low and firm.
"Okay," I replied, jumping for him.
As I flew at him he dove low, just before he rolled onto his back and kicked his hind legs into my stomach, sending upward.
I let out a grunt as I had the wind knocked out of me. Despite the blow I was able to land smoothly and regain my composure. I turned to face Hammer Hoof as he stood up.
"Alright, you didn't say anything about kicking," I said, "I guess I should go ahead and finish this then."
"Hey," Hammer Hoof laughed, "If you think you can, but so far I've held back on you, so don't think you're tough stuff just yet!"
"Alright, I've held back too, so why don't we go all out on this next one?" I asked.
"I don't see why not," Hammer Hoof said.
As soon as I made a move he followed. We lunged at each other both prepared to deliver our strongest blows. We both connected at the same time, both throwing a right punch to each others face. We both stopped mid air, falling to the ground in the middle of the ring.
My face felt like a punching bag, and my head felt like a bell as pain rang throughout. I held my eyes shut tight as I waited for the colors and stars to fade. I slowly looked up and noticed Hammer Hoof was snoring. It appeared that I had knocked him out.
I stood up slowly, just a little dizzy but otherwise fine. Starting with a few quiet and scattered applause the crowd started to cheer. The official came up and held my arm up with his magic, declaring me the winner as a couple of medics set Hammer Hoof on a stretcher and carried him out of the ring.
I sat with my friends as we watched the next fight between Landslide and Burstfire. Fluttershy held an icepack against my face as we sat.
"So Dako, how hard did that guy hit?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"Well, from the bruise I feel coming on, pretty hard," I said.
"We all thought you were crazy for just standing there like that when the fight started," Twilight said.
"Well, I had a feeling he wasn't gonna be strong to me at all, I guess I was wrong," I said, looking at the bruise on my arm.
"Next time you shouldn't stand around like that. You need to be more serious," Fluttershy said.
"Oh, so you want me to fight better, is that it? I thought you didn't like fighting?" I asked Fluttershy.
"Well, I don't, but you can't just be a punching bag," Fluttershy said, shifting the icepack.
"Ah-ah, Fluttershy, no one criticizes a game they don't care about!" I began, "If you think I could do better then you must have a genuine interest or concern."
Fluttershy turned away from me and blushed just a little.
"Okay, maybe I do care. About you that is. Please just fight more instead of stand around, okay?" Fluttershy said.
"You got it," I said, chuckling.
The match was over. Landslide won easily against Burstfire. Even though he had speed he just didn't have any strength against someone as big as Landslide. After a while, Burstfire had even begun to tire himself out. Now it was my turn.
As I stepped into the ring I waved to Fluttershy, and blew her a kiss. She sat there, turning a bit red as I noticed the others laughing and joking. I felt it get a little bit cooler as a shadow fell over me. I turned to see a large object behind me. As I followed upward with my eyes I saw Landslide looking right down on me.
"Are you ready?" Landslide said in a deep booming voice.
"Sure. Are you?" I asked.
"If you mean to say that you can beat me than you are mistaken," Landslide said, "You are too small."
The bell rang and the fight was on.
"Okay," I said, jumping up to eye level and punching him right in the face.
He took a step back, pretty much unfazed, before lifting his forelegs and slamming them into the mat. The force actually threw me off of my feet and onto me back.
As I lay there staring at the sky I watched as the sun was blocked out. Landslide was coming at me shoulder-first. I quickly rolled out from under him as I heard and felt him make impact with the mat.
I looked to see the dent put into the mat and the rip made in it as Landslide pressed a crater into the dirt under the mat with his massive shoulder. I stood up and stared him down as he looked me in the eye. Or so I thought, when I noticed he was looking over my shoulder.
I looked behind me to see Clay on the sideline, still smiling that cold and creepy smile of his.
"Alright, hold on, I have a question," I said.
"What is it?" Landslide boomed.
"What are you fighting for?" I asked.
"Does that really matter?" Landslide asked in return.
"Well, kinda," I replied.
"I'm fighting for the money. Aren't you?" Landslide asked.
I looked back at Clay who was still staring at us. He still wore that smile. I couldn't help but wonder why he was top opponent, why we were all fighting just to fight him. I also wondered why someone so scrawny and otherwise weak would be considered a tough fighter.
"Well," I began, "I was kind of fighting for the money... But now I just gotta know what the deal with that guy is," I said, looking over at Clay.
I jumped up and over Landslide and hit him as hard as I could in the back of his head, trying to send him down in one hit. It didn't work.
He stumbled forward a step or too as I landed behind him. He turned to face me. He ran up to me and raised his head up high, before slamming his forehead down onto me. I put my arms up over my head and tried to hold him back. I barely escaped experiencing what it's like to be a nail hammered into wood. As he lifted his head for a second bash, I crouched down before leaping into the air.
As he brought his head down I kicked him right in the forehead as hard as I could. Finally he was stunned for a few seconds. He fell to the ground, rubbing his head in pain. I could tell by now that I was going to be able to knock him out, so I resorted to another method. I grabbed him as best as I could.
I rolled him onto his back as I lifted him up, quickly tossing him out of the ring. The bell rang to sound the end of the match and the official raised my arm declaring me the victor. The crowd cheered again. But I remained calm as I looked over at Clay, who was still smiling despite seeing what I was capable of.
He stood up and walked up to the edge of the ring. The crowd fell silent, waiting for the next match start. I watched as Clay's horn began to glow. I had figured if he was a fighter that he'd be using his magic.
I got into a stance, ready to quickly take him out, or find out what his true strength was. I stared him down, trying to figure out just what he had other than magic. Finally the bell rang.
As soon as the bell was struck Clay's horn flashed brightly and the ground shook. I looked around to try and see what he was doing when the mat began to tent upward in front of me. A took a few steps back as the mat ripped open and a column of dirt rose upward. The column grew to about 15 feet in height before stopping, and then expanding outwards.
The crowd began to scream in fear as ponies began to leave the makeshift arena. I watched as the column began to take shape in what looked like a giant person. The dirt began to solidify and smooth out as the shape became more defined. Before me stood a 15 foot tall dirt giant.
"Do you like it?" Clay asked.
"What the hell is that thing!?" I shouted, staring up at the giant.
"Why, it's a dirt golem, of course," Clay replied.
The golem raised a leg and stomped for me. I quickly dove out of the way as the large foot stamped down, shaking the ground and stirring up clouds of dust.
"What's the matter Dako? You seemed so tough against those other guys, but you can't beat my golem?" Clay said.
I stood up and looked directly at the golem which was now turning around to face me. As soon as it saw me I jumped up at it, ready to attack. But before I could land a hit the golem swatted me out of the air like a fly, throwing me straight into the ground. I slowly got up to my hands and knees.
"Huh, this is pretty disappointing," Clay said, sounding bored.
"Clay! Stop this, this is too much! If you want to win so badly then fine, I forfeit!" I yelled out to Clay.
"I'm sorry, but that isn't what I want, at least, not so easily. Besides, you're stronger than that, go ahead, show me what your made of!" Clay shouted from the sideline.
I hopped up to my feet. If he wanted the true me, he was gonna get it. I pulled back my arms and cupped my hands together, charging up my energy.
"Ka! Me!" I began.
"Ah, that looks interesting," Clay said.
I continued charging my energy. The golem took notice and lifted it's fists over it's head.
"Ha! Me!" I continued.
The golem then brought both fists together over it's head as it began to swing downward.
"HAAAA!" I shouted as I thrust my hands forward, firing the blast right at the golem.
The Kamehame Ha collided with the golem and blasted away from his chest up to the arms it held over it's head. As the blast died down I saw that I had a clear shot, completely blowing away anything above the chest. The dirt golem now collapsed in front of me, dirt raining down on the mat.
I turned to face Clay with a smile on my face.
"You asked for it," I said smugly.
"Hm. You're right, I supposed I did. That was a very impressive trick, but there is one problem," Clay said.
"Oh yeah? What's that?" I asked, getting ready move.
"The golem isn't dead, it can't be killed, it's made of dirt," Clay said
At that moment the pile of dirt behind me flowed and spun around me, trapping me in it. I struggled to free myself, but to no effect. The dirt pooling around my waist began to harden and take shape as I was lifted off the ground. I noticed the hands that formed, and realized it was lifting me into the sky.
With the shadow cast by the giant golem as my only hint I could now see the full form of the golem as it held me high in the air. I felt the wind pick up as I was thrown downward towards the ground. Everything went black as I made contact with the ground.
I slowly opened my eyes as I weakly rolled onto my back. I looked up the golem, towering over me. I heard Clay laughing from the side of the ring.
"You're pretty tough. Not very strong, but you are hard to kill," Clay said.
I watched the golem pull back an arm as it hunched over me, swinging hard and slamming it's giant fist right into me. The impact pressed me into the ground as pain shot through my entire body. I clenched my teeth as I lie there trying to recover from the blow, just as the golem was lifting his fist off of me, swinging his other fist down onto me.
As the other fist made impact I was flooded with more pain, and shoved deeper into the ground. I think this time I was finally aware of my friends screams of terror as they saw me being beaten. As the golem lifted it's other giant fist off of me I tensed up my body and flared up the aura of the Kaio-ken.
I shot straight up from the ground and up to the golems head, kicking him as hard as I could, sending him flying back a few steps as he stumbled and landed on one of the empty sets of bleachers. I floated mid air for a few seconds before landing in the middle of the ring, my aura flickering out. I believe with that last attack I technically won with a ring out, but the officials had long since left.
"There you go, that's what I'm talking about!" Clay shouted.
There had to be a way to beat the golem. Maybe if I kept going until Clay got too tired to use his magic. Maybe if I just knocked out Clay. I didn't have much more time to think as the golem lifted itself up and returned to the ring. If I wanted to win, the only way would be a knock out as a ring out was out of the question, and I didn't see a submission move being possible. But knocking out a dirt golem?
The golem charged me now, ready to kill, I jumped up and began swinging violently at its face, punching rapid fire. I was able to hold it back, but I forgot that it couldn't feel pain as it reached up and grabbed me with its huge hands. The golem squeezed me as tightly as it could as I felt my joints popping in my entire body, and not in a good way. I flared up the Kaio-ken again, trying to pry open the golems grip. As I continued struggling I snapped off the golems fingers as I broke opens its hands.
I dropped down to the ground as I fell out of the golems hands and kicked as hard as I could against one of its legs, shattering it in half, toppling the giant. The severed fingers and leg all turned back into loose dirt and slithered back into the golem as it repaired itself.
"Clay, you can stop this at any time!" I yelled out, turning my back on the golem.
I felt a large object crush me where I stood as the sunlight was blocked out. The heavy weight was lifted off of me and as the dust cleared I looked around and noticed the crater I was sitting in.
"Ooh, bad move, shouldn't have taken your eyes off of your opponent," Clay said.
I struggled to move around at that point. All I could do was lay there, to weak to get up. But then I had an idea.
"What is this? What are you doing?" Clay asked.
I began taking off my weights. At this point it was too late to really get any advantage, but at least I could stand up. I slowly climbed to my feet, feeling much better. I noticed how easily I stood up without several thousand pounds strapped to me. I stood there, feeling how light my body was, just before I was crushed again. This time I wasn't able to get up again.
"Hm, I guess you can crush a cockroach," Clay said.
The golem lifted it's enormous foot off of me as I rolled over onto my back, to watch it slam back down one more time, then everything went black.